All Things Lovely

Luisa Perry

It was a bad idea. It was a very bad idea.

Why did I have to be brave for something so stupid? I should not have come to Vera Harlow’s party. I shouldn’t have snuck out of my house to be here.

All my life I have been a good girl. I am an obedient daughter. I am a helpful friend. I am a kind stranger. I am a responsible girl with good grades. My parents have high expectations for me. In my whole life, I have never done anything to disappoint my parents, although I have been disappointing myself all my life, who cares, right? As long as I am keeping the people around me happy, I am a good person.

Even when I am eighteen years old, I am unable to make my own decisions. Not only because I am not allowed to, but because I don’t have a backbone. I never had a voice, so I forgot to speak. My father claimed that Luisa will be a doctor like me, so Luisa will be a doctor like her father. My mother claimed that Luisa looks good with long hair, so Luisa will not get a haircut. My parents think that the student at Luisa’s school can be a bad influence on her, so Luisa doesn’t have friends. The only friend I have that is approved by my parents is not truly my friend, she is just there to compete with me. I have been living under my parent’s shadow for as long as I could remember, and I am sick and tired of it.

So, I decided to do something stupid. Just three weeks before summer break, Vera Harlow announced that she will be having a party at her house, I decided to go to it and when my parents refused to let me go, I did the very first bad thing of my life, I snuck out after my parents went to bed.

I was so badly craving to defy the rules, that I didn’t even consider the consequences. Now here I was – at Vera Harlow’s loud and drug-infused party with almost entire senior year gathered under one roof. When I first stepped inside her house, I didn’t think there would be so many people. I didn’t think they would be taking drugs out in open. I didn’t think I would find half-naked men and women making out. This is not something I expected from a crowd of teenagers.

I learned a few things in the last hour.

One, Vera Harlow comes from a well-off family.

Two, a very friendly and polite Vera is a party animal.

Three, Blake West, the school’s hot boy, is either gay or bisexual.

Four, her classmates take drugs.

Five, Vera Harlow is Aiden Harlow’s younger sister.

And six, I somehow ended up in Aiden’s room.

“What are you doing in my room? People are not allowed to be in my room.” A very bored Aiden spoke while he had his laptop on his lap. While I was leaning against the door of his room that I just closed. I walked in thinking it was an empty room because it was so quiet and dark in her and all the other rooms of the house were occupied by the horny teenagers.

I couldn’t move. Wide-eyed, I stared at the most beautiful boy I have ever seen. My heart skipped a beat. I was in Aiden Harlow’s room. Aiden Harlow was a senior in our school, who passed school last year. He was the valedictorian of his batch.

Aiden Harlow was the heartthrob of our school. He has the typical bad boy look, but he wasn’t anything he looked like. He was the teacher’s favorite, probably because he was a bright student. Sure, he always had a scowl on his face – or at the time he would look very bored. I never saw him misbehave with anyone. I never saw him bullying anyone. He was known as a kind-hearted but scary at times bad boy.

Another thing that was very attractive about him was that he never whore around and was always reserved – although every girl at our school was dying to be with him. From what I remember, I never saw him with any girl in the school. There was a rumor that he already had a girlfriend outside of school and he was very committed to that girl. I am not going to lie, that rumor hurt me a little.

But who was I kidding, I never had a chance with Aiden Harlow – I didn’t have a chance with the sluttiest or nerdiest guy of the school – Aiden Harlow was a far fetch so I just used to admire him from far. Like the rest of the school, I am sure he doesn’t know I even exist.

“Please, leave.” I blinked when I heard him again.

Aiden was sitting on his bed with his long legs stretched out and had his laptop resting on his lap. He was wearing dark grey sweatpants and a white oversized hoodie. His short brown hair was messy – like he just got out of bed or perhaps he has a habit of running his fingers through his hair. His hazel eyes narrowed down at me as my body refused to move. I am not sure if I was starstruck or just surprised, whatever it was – my body refuses to recover.

Aiden’s dull expressions turned sour when I didn’t move nor did I speak. He clicked his tongue, “How many times do I have to tell Vera to keep her friends out of my way?” Aiden mumbled agitatedly as he put the laptop on the bed and swing his leg down on the floor. That’s when I noticed, he was bare feet – isn't it a little too cold for that? I didn’t have much time to think about it as a very aggravated Aiden strode towards where I stood and halted a few feet away. He was tall, but not ridiculously tall. I liked that. “What is your problem?” He spatted.

My eyes widened when I saw his jaws clenched while his glare was sat on me. What is wrong with me? Why am I not moving? Why am I not saying anything? Come on, Lusia – speak. Speak! “I am not Vera’s friend,” were words that escaped my mouth.

Aiden narrowed his eyes at my response. The corner of his lips pulls upwards in confusion, “Then why are you here?” He question. His voice has gotten deeper, or was I just having a stroke? I couldn’t tell.

I gulped. I soon lost the ability to form coherent words, “Uh – drugs, they – are – they are doing drugs down there,” She pointed out.

Aiden stared at me. Aiden Harlow was staring at me. And then he blinked – wow, I was micro observing. He was silent for a few seconds before he spoke, “I meant, why are you here at Vera’s infamous parties if you didn’t want to get wasted?” He rephrases his question.

“Uh, she – invited me to come,” I replied meekly.

Aiden raised his perfectly arched eyebrow, “I thought she wasn’t your friend,” he commented.

I nodded, “She isn't. She was just being polite, I guess.” I said with a shrug.